Usually on strike days there is an hourly service between Macclesfield - Manchester Piccadilly - I would expect that this will be the minimum provision again.

Although the timetables aren't entered into the system until a few days before.

Northern are contractually obliged to introduce 50% Driver Controlled Operation with guards downgraded to customer care i.e. ticket examiners. Newer entrants to the grade will not have the same safety training and route knowledge training as the current guards. DCO will likely begin on Manchester - Stoke trains after the new Class 331s arrive and begin operating the service.

There will also be instances when trains can run without ticket examiners.

Last edited by turdo170 on Tue Feb 20, 2018 1:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.

If operating companies really need to cut staff costs then I think most passengers would prefer the Dockland Light Railway (or Thameslink, or Glasgow Subway) approach, where drivers are turned into 'train attendants', and having them in charge of the doors, tickets, safety etc. To be honest most trains could run without drivers, it is mainly the public heeby-jeeby factor (and up-front costs) that puts off the required upgrades. It would increase the capacity of the lines too.

Having said that, Manchester Metrolink uses driver controlled doors without any obvious problems (other than fare-dodging, but then that is a problem on Northern too).

Well I saw a leaked document that said they would pay new entrants around 20,000 a year to be a ticket examiner vs 35,000 a year to be a safety critical guard but they would obviously have to pay the drivers more to compensate. So you are looking at around a 10,000 saving per staff member and as Northern has a very high turnover natural wastage will slowly reduce the old hands earning roughly 35,000.

They also aim to earn more revenue as a guard will go from safety and timekeeping being the highest priority to being more revenue based and they will have no commision to pay to the staff anymore to encourage them to check tickets. Plus of course they are installing card only ticket machines and will be collecting more failure to pay £80.00 admin fees off passengers.

Although I think a penalty fare scheme (£20.00 or twice the Anytime single fare) will soon follow. Then the ticket examiners will definitely start to disappear starting with "staff shortages" as was seen in Scotland.